This dinner (let me just come out and say it from the start) ….. this dinner is probably not on your diet. Well, it wouldn’t appear on any diet I’ve ever subjected myself to. But if you’re in the market for comfort food and don’t mind throwing a little calorie caution to the wind, you should whip this little number up ASAP. Even with an onion gravy, I would absolutely call it kid friendly. A perfect Sunday supper or a relatively easy weeknight meal, serve it over mashed potatoes or buttered egg noodles and worry about the treadmill later. : )

Drizzle olive oil (a turn of the pan or so) in a skillet over medium heat and melt the butter into the oil. Add the onions; season with salt and pepper, the pinch of dried thyme, and add the bay leaf. Caramelize the onions until very soft and sweet and light golden brown in color, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, soak the break in milk or half and half. Place the meat in a mixing bowl and add the egg. Squeeze out the bread and crumble it into crumbs as you add it to the meat in the bowl. Add the Worcestershire and grated onion to the beef. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and combine well. Form into 4 (1 inch thick) oval loaves. Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the loaves and cook until cooked through, about 8 minutes per side. Transfer the loaves to a platter.

Sprinkle flour over caramelized onions, stir one minute. Deglaze the pan you cooked the meat in with the wine (or beef stock) and pour this over the onions (strain it first if you want pretty gravy). Stir the beef stock into the onion mixture and bring up to a simmer; cook and stir until gravy begins to thicken. Pour the gravy over the Salisbury steaks. Garnish with platter with watercress or chopped parsley if desired; serve immediately.